After nearly four weeks of waiting, LeBron James has finally let the world know his decision. Instead of heading back home for one final run with the Cleveland Cavaliers, the four-time NBA champion will join yet another superteam.
In a shocking turn of events, James will team up with Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Jaylen Brown in the new-look Philadelphia 76ers, giving Nick Nurse's team arguably the most stacked starting lineup in the game.
Of course, that can only leave Koby Altman and company wondering what went wrong and how they could fumble this. At first glance, the answer to that question seems pretty obvious, and you just have to look at James Harden.
LeBron James wanted nothing to do with the James Harden curse
James Harden didn't sign with the Cavaliers to give them enough financial flexibility to get their hands on LeBron. That was nice and all, but after giving it some thought, why would someone looking to win a championship want anything to do with James Harden?
Harden is probably the biggest playoff dropper in NBA history. Even at this point in his career, when his legacy is set, and he's seen all types of defenses and situations, he can't get out of his own head in the postseason.
Moreover, Harden usually brings chaos. He's been much more mature in recent years and hasn't partied as much. He's also taken better care of his body, but ultimately, things always seem to end the same way with the former Houston Rockets star. LeBron brings his fair share of drama, and he won't want anything to do with that.
Players talk, and they've seen how his previous stops have ended. Even with Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley, it was hard to believe things would've been any different with James Harden after watching him flame out in the playoffs again last season.
Rich Paul showed how the Harden trade was going to be a problem when he shared LeBron's "whiteboard of options" on his podcast. Next to the Cavaliers, a note mentioned that losing Darius Garland was a negative. In LeBron's eyes, it seems, Garland was a better teammate to have than Harden.
Now, the Cavaliers are stuck in a tough spot. Should they just blow it up? Of course, they were competitive without LeBron, but do they really have enough to get to the mountaintop and take down other teams like the Sixers?
They just committed a lot of money to Donovan Mitchell and are also paying a lot for Mobley. But why double down on Harden when he might essentially be running top free agents out of town? Why bring him back when he cost the team more than he gave them in the playoffs?
Add us as a preferred source on Google